The Calm Before The Storm
by What.happened.to.Ellie.Creed
Summary: Bella and her daughter escape a bad relationship. On her way back to her hometown, a violent storm pases through. She's trapped in a small town hotel with one of the last people she wants in her life. BxE A/H
1. Chapter 1

"Bella, I know I'm not her father! Tell me who is!" My husband thundered. Poor little Addy was trembling in my arms. This question always led to anger and pain. James was never like this when we first met. He was sweet and passionate. Now all he was was an abusive drunk.

"I said tell me, dammit!" He yelled. Addy had large green eyes and my mother's light blonde hair. Only a few more minutes and he'd be out for the night.

"I don't know!" I lied. I knew exactly who her father was, but there's no way in hell I'm telling James.

"That's right, you were a poor little helpless slut when I met you!" He said mockingly.

"I am not, never was, or ever will be, a slut James!" I screeched. I should have known better, though.

That little outburst earned me a punch to the jaw that sent me flying backwards. Addy flailed out of my arms.

"MOMMY!" She screamed, running towards me. James caught her wrist and flung her into the wall.

"Don't touch her!" I hissed through clenched teeth. James chuckled and threw her into the wall again. He grabbed the bottle of whiskey that he had been nursing and downed the remainder.

I ran forward to embrace my daughter. James stumbled and fell to the floor in a heap. This is my chance to get out. I've been planning this for a long time. The cookie jar in the top cabinet contained a new id, cash and the deed to my father's house. I soothed Addy and looked at her busted lip from hitting the floor.

My father, Charlie, died two years ago in a fatal car accident; I had been married to James for two years before that. Addy wasn't born when I got together with James. That's why everybody thought Addy was his child. I'm only twenty-two and I've already gone through things no one should ever go through.

I rushed her into her room to get the bag that we'd packed for her and me. My dog, Senna, was barking protectively from her cage. She was a large brindle boxer with a hell of an attitude. I can't possibly count the times she has bitten James and I had to distract him from shooting her, with sex.

Senna, left a huge bite mark on James' ass that will probably hurt in the morning, as soon as I let her out. I took my cell phone out and called Emmett. James forced me to break ties with him. But, he didn't know that I always talked to him while he was passed out. I missed him and my friends so much.

"Hello?" A groggy voice answered. Cue happy dance, Emmett was home!

"Em, Addy and I need help. We need to get out of here. We just need a ride or a car to borrow to get back to Forks." I rushed, taking the money out of the cookie jar.

"Let me put on some pants and I'll drive you to a rental car place." He said, relieved that I was finally leaving.

"Oh and Em, thank you." I said gratefully. Addy and I went out to sit on the front steps of our home with Senna lying at my feet. Emmett was the only one who really knew what happened about four years ago. Well, now I'm pretty sure that Rosalie knows now too.

I let my thoughts drift back to that night…

_June 1__st__ 2005_

"_You have to wear the blue one!" Alice shrieked at me. She was urging me to wear this horrid oversized shirt that some might call a dress._

"_No way in hell am I wearing that, Ally!" I yelled._

"_It's our graduation party. You have to end high school with a bang. If you know what I'm saying." She smirked. She and my older sister, Rosalie, were always dogging me because I'm still a virgin._

_Alice Brandon, Emmett McCarty, my sister's boyfriend, and Angela Weber were my best friends in the whole world. Emmett was held back a year so Rosalie had to go to college without him. Em and I will be joining her at San Francisco State in the fall._

"_Fine." I huffed, knowing it was a futile effort to argue with Alice. She squealed and jumped up and down. I really don't even know why I'm going. The party was at Edward and Jasper Cullen's house; the most popular kids in school. Even though Alice and Jasper were going out, they really didn't hang out that often at school._

_Jasper, Edward and Emmett were the best players on the varsity football team. They always had their same little 'clique' so to speak._

_Alice scrunched my wavy, mahogany hair and gave me light smoky eyes. She was wearing a turquoise strapless dress that stopped several inches above her knees. Her short, spiky, black hair was straightened._

"_Let's go, Bells. Em will be here any minute." She said pulling me by the hand down the steps._

_Emmett pulled up out front and laid on the horn. I started to step up into his truck but my dress kept riding up. Alice seemed to be having the same problem as well._

"_Hey, Em? Can you give us a boost?" I asked sweetly. He huffed and came around to the passenger side. When he saw us, his jaw hit the floor. He picked me up easily and stuck me in the backseat of his truck as he did the same for Alice._

_We were silent for most of the ride. Alice and I sat in melancholy. We were headed off in different directions. She was going to Columbia and I was going to San Francisco State Emmet and Rosalie. This was our last summer all together._

"_You know? I'm just gonna get plastered and party my ass off." I said defiantly. Alice bounced in her seat and Emmett whooped at my statement._

"_Me too!" Alice squealed._

_You could hear the music pulsing from a mile away._

_I lived up to my promise that night. I got plastered. I was dancing with Al when two strong hands pulled me to their owner. I looked up into the deepest set of emerald green eyes I've ever seen._

"_I've been looking all over for you, Bella." Edward said. We started dancing and grinding. I got confident and did a booty drop, just the way Alice taught me. I could feel that he was excited by the way my ass rubbed against him._

_He growled and turned me around. Our lips met in a hot, passionate kiss. He pushed me against the wall and snaked his hand under the dress I'd been wearing._

_And the rest was, well, you know…history._

_A week later I found out I was pregnant. Two weeks after that, I met James. We went out on a few dates, and before long we moved in together. Up until Addy was born, James thought it was his child. I only ever told Emmett about that night with Edward Cullen. I've never told anyone else because I'd just be admitting to what I am, a slut. Besides, who loses their virginity on a drunken one-night stand with the most gorgeous guy you know?_

I was pulled out of my thoughts by a horn honking. Emmett had only ever seen Addy once, right after I had her. She's turning four this year.

Em jumped out of the car and hugged me tightly. It's been so long since I've actually seen him. He pulled back to examine me. I noticed Addy cowering behind growling Senna.

"Hey, Addy, come here and say hi to your uncle Em!" I said brightly. She trembled and shook her head. Her bright green eyes were twisted with fear and it broke my heart. Emmett growled and took a step towards the house where James was currently passed out. I threw my arm across his massive chest to stop him.

"Baby, it's okay. I won't hurt you." Emmett said soothingly. She took a timid step forward and Emmett came the rest. He picked her up and swirled her around. Her joyous laugh rang through the air.

"Em, can you take us back to your place for the night? I'm really tired and I want to see Rosie." I asked. He nodded and corralled Senna into the backseat of his jeep. " I want to take a look at your jaw and her lip anyway." He said firmly.

The drive was short and silent. When we walked into their townhouse, Rosalie stood and started threatening.

"Emmett McCarty! What the fuck are you—" She cut off as she saw who was with him.

"Bella?" She asked. I nodded and we ran towards each other, both crying and hugged.

"Rose, I want you to meet my daughter. Addison Rose Swan." I said. Addy waved and clutched my leg.

"Hey." Rose said.

"Addy, this is your Auntie Rose. Em's wife." I cooed.

"Oh my god! Bella, what happened to you?" She said, ghosting her hand over my jaw line. I shook my head, refusing.

"I'll get the guest room ready." Rose said scampering off up the steps.

One hour and a whole lot of tears later, I was finally able to go to sleep. Let the nightmares begin.


	2. Chapter 2

I woke to the sun flittering through the slats in the blinds covering the window. Addy had her little arms wrapped firmly around my waist. I looked over at the alarm clock on the nightstand. 6:30.

If Rose was anything like she used to be, she'd be leaving for her morning run in a half an hour. I slipped out from under Addy's arms and snuck downstairs. Sure enough, there she was, sipping her coffee and scratching Senna between the ears.

"Hey, Bells." She said not looking me in the eye. Instead, she was looking at my jaw.

"What the hell did that dumbfuck do?" She screeched.

"He doesn't like it when I sass him." I mumbled quietly.

"Bella, I swear to god if I ever meet this jackass, I'm going to rip his balls off with my bare hands and shove them down his throat!" She yelled, making me flinch. I didn't like it when people yelled; it scared me. Our mother turned to drugs when my father divorced her. She would wake up at all times of the night, yelling at us and coming at us with a belt. With James, he was really quiet when he was mad; you know, the calm before the storm.

I heard a scream. Addy. She had mom's set of lungs. I raced up to the guest room to see her huddled in a ball, crying softly.

"Hush now, baby. Mommy's here." I soothed. I rocked her and sang her favorite lullaby, the one I used to sing when she was a baby.

Hush, little baby, don't say a word

_Momma's gonna buy you a mocking bird._

_And if that mockingbird don't sing,_

_Momma's gonna buy you a diamond ring._

_If that diamond ring turns brass,_

_Momma's gonna buy you a looking glass._

_And if that looking glass gets broke,_

_Momma's gonna buy you a Billy goat._

_And if that Billy goat runs away,_

_Momma's gonna buy you another some day._

I looked down and saw her peacefully sleeping. A sniffle, two actually, came from the doorway. Emmett had his large arms wrapped around Rose's waist as they looked intently at my sleeping daughter and I. They both had tears rolling down their face. It wasn't up until that point, I realized I had tears of my own streaming freely down my blushing cheeks.

"Bells, that was amazing. I've always loved hearing you sing." Rose smiled.

"Thanks, sis. I've got to go before James starts looking for me. He doesn't know where dad used to live. Can you give me a lift to a rental place?" I asked quietly.

"Absolutely not. I have dad's old ford in the garage. It's been sort of my pet project lately." Rose insisted.

"Okay. I'm going to wake her up. We'll get breakfast on the way." I said, pulling my shoes on. I leaned to Addy and whispered.

"Baby, time to get up." And then kissed her forehead. She looked up at me with pleading eyes, vying for more sleep.

"Sorry, sweetie, we've gotta go." I lifted her into my arms and carried her downstairs.

"Hey, punkin'" Rose said, taking Addy from me and started humming a rhythmless tune as she walked to the living room, digging around for something in a cabinet.

I walked into the kitchen to pour a cup of coffee. I sat down to the table across from Emmett. He was looking into his mug with his usually grinning mouth set in a grim line. My mouth opened and closed several times, at a loss of words to say.

"Why didn't you call me sooner?" His voice said and it sounded like he was crying.

"Because I was stupid. He'd just find me before I got anywhere anyway. It took a while to save enough money to get us started. I was just so stupid. I took all his shit and never stood up for myself! I'm such an idiot, Emmett!" I was sobbing, sliding to my knees.

"Shh, shh. It's okay. It's over now." He tried to hush me as he picked me up and rocked me back and forth. I clutched his shirt in my hands and wailed some more.

"No, Em, it's not okay! Imagine what all this did to Addy! This will be with her for the rest of her life! All because her stupid mother had a drunken one-night stand with Edward Cullen and had nowhere else to run. This is all my fault!" I shrieked. I spoke what was on my mind before even thinking about it. Rosalie didn't know that Addy was Edward's child and I just screamed it at the top of my lungs.

"What the hell did you just say!?" Rosalie screamed from somewhere in the house, obviously hearing my breakdown.

"Nothing Rose! Keep your nose in your own god damned business!" Emmett bellowed.

"You idiot! My sister is my business!" She screeched walking into the kitchen, making me flinch.

"Mommy? Why are you crying?" Addy sniffled from behind Rose's legs.

"It's nothing. Come here, sweetie." I climbed off of Emmett's lap and held my arms out. She ran to me and hugged me with all her three-year-old might.

"Isabella Marie Swan. You tell me what you meant by 'a drunken one-night stand with Edward Cullen'?" Rosalie hissed.

"It means that, the night of that huge graduation party, Emmett probably told you what he could remember about it, I was piss drunk and we were dancing. Well one thing led to another, and I meant exactly what I said, a drunken one-night stand with Edward Cullen!" I explained.

"Does that mean…Bella how could you not have told me?! Why didn't you use something!? The pill, a condom, anything!" Rosalie shrieked, forgetting, again, about my sensitivity to yelling. "It broke poor Alice's heart that you never talked to her anymore!"

"Rose…Rosie…ROSALIE!!!" Emmett yelled in between rants until he got her attention. Addy was quivering in my arms and had tears pooling in her eyes.

Rosalie noticed that both Addy and I were crying. Her furious expression turned quickly to guilt. She ran to pick up Addy but she shied into my chest.

"Rose! I was a stupid, drunk kid! I had no idea what I was doing! I'm sorry, okay, I'm sorry! Is that what you want to hear? That I'm sorry for the best thing that ever happened t me?" I defended.

"Bella, I'm the one who's sorry. I shouldn't have said that. Do you want dad's truck?" She said quietly.

"You shouldn't apologize. I, well, we, were stupid. But the only decision I regret is marrying the ass scratching monkey that I wasted four years of my life on." I said, exasperated.

"We'd really better be going." I said, grabbing Senna's leash and calling her.

"Okay, here are the keys and some extra cash. We love you, Bella." Em said, pulling Addy and I into his massive chest.

"You better come down for Thanksgiving." Rosalie instructed, forgetting the argument that just took place.

"Sure thing sis." I said, turning to Addy, "Say bye to Auntie Rose and Uncle Em." She looked up and waved sleepily and mumbled something intelligible.

We said our goodbyes and loaded up dad's old Ford Explorer. The first step on a road to a fresh start.


	3. Chapter 3

Addy and I were on the highway, going north, when it started to rain. Well, it's pretty understandable because it is Oregon in the springtime.

An hour later, the rain was pouring down in buckets. I could hardly see anything. The thunder crashed and the lightning exploded around us. Addy was in the back seat, curled up beside a sleeping Senna, sleeping peacefully.

The rain got so bad that I could hardly see. The thunder had woken Addy up and she was screaming in fear at the noises.

We had just passed the Washington state border and were about two hundred miles from home. I pulled into the parking lot of a hotel. It looked expensive but at this point, who fucking cares?

The hotel looked pretty full but I still gathered Addy in my arms and shielded her from the unyielding rain that poured from the sky. Senna would have to stay in the car for the night. I ran into the lobby.

The man at the front desk gave me an appraising look. I looked down at my shirt; realizing it was completely see through and my headlights were on from the cold.

"What can I do for you?" He drawled.

"Just a room." I sighed.

"Name?"

"Isabella McCarty." I said automatically. Emmett told me to use his surname if I checked into a hotel.

"Okay, cash or credit?" He was talking to my tits and it was really starting to piss me off.

"Cash." I said, grabbing my wallet and pulling out two hundred dollar bills.

"That'll be one-fifty." I threw the money at him and asked for the key.

I got away as fast as I could and went to our room. We were both hungry so we went to the restaurant.

The waiter seated us and asked us what we wanted. I ordered myself a steak and Addy chicken strips.

We were about halfway though our meal when a small child ran up and dove under our table. I stuck my head under and looked at him.

"Hey, sweetie." I cooed. He looked at me with a trembling lower lip. The eyes and face on that child look so familiar. His stormy blue eyes glistened with tears and he had a very rounded, pixyish face. The thing that was the most familiar was his curly blonde hair. He looked to be about two to three years old.

Just then a knock on the tabletop brought me back above the table. There _he _stood. I felt like all the wind was knocked out of my chest. I instantly felt faint. We just stared at each other.

"Bella Swan?" He breathed, voice sounding like velvet. I nodded dumbly. He laughed nervously and stuck his hand behind his neck. He looked exactly like he did in high school.

"My nephew." He said, kneeling down and picking the little boy up. I nodded again, incapable of speaking.

A small woman came bouncing up beside him and taking the boy from Edward. It only took one look to realize who that woman was. She looked up at me with large eyes.

"BELLA!" She screamed and jumped into my arms. We both had tears rolling down our faces. Addy was just sitting there, cringing at our volume.

"Ally! I missed you so much." I sobbed. I hadn't seen her in four long years. James wouldn't even let me call or send birthday or Christmas cards; basically cutting me off from my old life. She eventually stopped bouncing and sat down across from Addy.

"Hey puddin' aren't you pretty?" Alice cooed. Addy smiled; before realizing that she had forgotten about her busted lip. She cringed in pain; it didn't go unnoticed by Alice.

"Bella, what happened to her lip?" Alice half screeched. I jumped at the loudness of her voice.

"Come with me. Now." Her voice was a deadly calm. "Edward, Jasper, keep an eye on…" She trailed of not knowing Addy's name.

"Addison." I filled in. Alice yanked me backwards by my belt loops, towards the door of the elevator.

She pulled me into a room like mine and shoved me on the bed.

"Alice! What the—" She cut me off by screeching.

"What the hell happened to us, Bella? We were best friends! Right after graduation you took off to live with your mom!" She was shaking with sobs. I was curled up into a ball, shivering and cringing.

"If you'll be calm, I'll tell you." I whispered. She nodded her encouragement. I really didn't know how to go about it. So I jumped into the truth.

"Addy's Edward's" I blurted. Alice's jaw dropped. She was about to say something but I cut her off with a wave of my hand. "The night of the party. I lost my virginity. But in losing something, I gained something in the process. We were both stupid, drunken kids; no one thought twice about protection." I looked down at my feet, ashamed.

"A week later I found out I was preggers. I couldn't face anyone so I moved to Phoenix with my mom. A few weeks later I met my husband, well soon to be ex, James. Things went along just peachy until we got married. Addy wasn't born yet. The one person that was with me through labor was Emmett. He managed to get away from Rose for the night and he stayed with me at the hospital."

"After Addy turned one, James started coming home later, drinking more and yelling a lot. One night I asked him why he missed dinner. It was our anniversary so I made a nice dinner and got Addy a babysitter. He got really mad and said it was none of my damn business. That night when I came to bed, he stopped me in the hallway and threw me against the wall and said if I didn't keep my nose in my own business, I'd regret it." I heard Alice gasp.

"Last night he really pissed me off. He did that to Addy. I called Em and he came and got me. I took dad's old ford and got caught in the storm. And, well, here I am." I finished lamely.

"So what are you guys doing here?" I asked, trying to lighten up the mood.

"We came to see you. We missed you guys. Jasper and I got married last year and moved back to Forks. Edward, well, he never left." She mumbled.

"So... who was the cutie pie under my table?" I chuckled, remembering his face.

"That's my baby. Jonah. He just turned two last month." She had a wistful look in her eyes when she spoke about him.

"I'm really happy for you." I said.

"I missed you so much! You look great! You filled out your lanky, bony body! And grew some tits!" Alice exclaimed. I laughed because I was always really skinny and flat-chested.

"One of the perks of chilbirth, you fill out and grow some funbags." I said between laughs. Even as a teenager, Alice said I had the dirtiest mouth out of everyone she knew. Whenever Emmett and I went to a movie theater we got all of us kicked out because during dirty parts in movies, we whispered dirty things in Alice's and Rose's ears, making them laugh.

"I missed you so much!" She squealed and threw her arms around me. We just sat there in an embrace until a knock at the door brought us back to reality. Alice bounced up to get it.

Edward walked in with a screaming Addy. I rushed up to get her. As I rocked her I gave Edward a death stare. "What the fuck did you do to her?" I hissed.

He shrugged and said, "I don't know. She was just sitting there, eating, one second she was talking to Jasper and the next she was screaming for her mommy." He said. She normally never did this, especially in public.

"What did Jasper say?" I panicked. When people asked about James was the thing that usually set her off, if anything.

"He noticed the ring on your finger and asked about your husband." He shrugged, an unknown expression flashed in his eyes. Jealousy, maybe.

"Just as a warning, never talk about James." I shuddered. I took off my ring and walked over to the bathroom. I dropped my ring and turned to face Edward, "I'm not maried to that ass scratching monkey anymore." And walked out of the hotel room and to mine.

That night, dreams of the night after graduation night flashed through my mind, making me toss and turn through the night.


	4. Chapter 4

EPOV

When my brother's wife called and told me that we were going to go to San Francisco and suprise Bella, Emmett and Rosalie, I was almost jumping for joy. When she left and went to Phoenix to live with her mom, it almost broke my heart. I'd loved her since the first day of freshman year. We were biology partners.

We were speeding down the highway when the rain started coming down in buckets. I pulled my Volvo into the parking lot of a really nice hotel. I parked next to a really familiar ford Explorer. It looks like Chief Swan's. Damn it! I can't rid myself of thoughts of Bella for five seconds.

As we stood in line for the front desk, I noticed a woman standing in front of me. From the back she was beautiful. She had long, waist length, wavy mahogany colored hair that fell across her delicate shoulders. The flimsy white t-shirt was almost completely see through from the rain. A small little girl, maybe two or three, was balanced on her hip. The toddler was almost as cute as my nephew, Jonah. She had wispy blonde hair and, I hate to say this, Bella's face. I couldn't see her eyes because she was sleeping.

When it was our turn we got two rooms. One for me; one for Jasper and Alice. Alice told me to meet them down at the restaurant in an hour. I agreed and went up to take a nice long shower. I stood under the spray for I don't really know how long. The water started to turn cold, so I got out.

I went down to the restaurant and got a table for Alice, Jasper and I. A waitress came by and eyed me up and down. I told her my order. Alice bounced into the seat next to me and gave me a screaming Jonah. Usually when he is like this, I could calm him. Jasper just sat there, shaking his head. Tonight, though, Jonah was very uncooperative to my attempts to calm him. He jumped out of my arms and ran to a table, diving under it.

When I reached it, I realized it was the woman who I saw earlier. She had her head under the table but the little girl was the one whom I recognized. She was staring at me with wide, emerald green eyes. I smiled at her and knocked on the tabletop.

It was almost as if my life stood still those three odd seconds that it took her to bring herself above the table. Bella Swan! I knew the girl looked familiar!

"I-Isabella S-swan?" I stuttered out. She blushed and nodded. That blush. She looked just as she did in high school. Her face was more rounded and that sparkle was gone from her chocolate brown eyes.

I knelt down to pull Jonah out from under the table. "My nephew." I mumbled lamely. Alice came bouncing over and immediately realized that the woman was Bella. They screamed and threw themselves at each other.

"BELLA!" Aice shrieked/sobbed. They eventually calmed themselves enough to sit down. Jasper had been standing beside me, watching with curious eyes as he bounced Jonah in his arms.

I had just now noticed the large bruise on Bella's jaw. My fists clenched at the thought of Bella being hurt. Alice was now talking to the little girl.

"Hey puddin' aren't you pretty?" Alice cooed. The little girl smiled and then cringed. Directing my eyes to her small mouth. A busted lip.

"Bella, what happened to her lip?" Alice half screeched. Bella and I jumped at the loudness of her voice. Bella shook her head. Something had happened.

"Come with me. Now." Her voice was a deadly calm. "Edward, Jasper, keep an eye on…" She trailed off not knowing the girl's name.

"Addison." Bella's voice was stone cold. Alice yanked her up and pulled her off. I sat down across from Addison.

"Hey sweetheart. Would you mind if I called you Addy?" Jasper asked in his sweet, charming, fatherly voice. The girl shook her head and smiled.

"I'm Jasper, you can call me Jazz or Jazzy." He grinned.

"Hey, sunshine. I'm Edward." I gave her a crooked smile. "And this little chubba-bubba is Jonah." Jasper gave me a death glare but it was true. Jonah was a little butterball! He had the roundest cheeks out of anyone I knew.

"Was that your mommy?" Jasper asked sweetly.

"Yeah. Our dog, Senny, is in the car." Her eyes got really excited when she spoke of her dog.

"What kind of dog is she?" We'd have to supply most of the conversation from what I have gathered so far. She was shy, just like Bella/

"I think James calls her an 'Ass biter'. But mommy says she's a bocker or something." She shrugged. My shoulders were shaking with silent laughter. I stopped immediately when I remembered her shudder as she said James.

"Who's James? Is he your daddy?" Jasper questioned lightly. Her eyes got wide.

"No. I think he thinks I think he is, or something." She mumbled, looking down. She was very intelligent for someone so small. "Mommy talks in her sleep," She continued with a small smile. "I've heard her say over and that James is not my daddy. Then she says somthing about...gradg-ee-a-shun. James is never home so I always sleep with mommy." I almost choked on the water I'd been drinking.

"You 'kay, Eddie?" Addy looked at me with concern in her large emerald orbs. Normally, I would have been really annoyed with someone using that nickname, but when Addy used it, I loved it. A huge, goofy grin was plastered on my face.

"Never better." I said.

"Now Addy, please don't get upset. Did James do that to you and your mommy?" Jasper asked. Her eyes had tears pooling in them as she nodded.

"Y-yes." She she nearly screamed. Jasper nearly jumped over the table to get to her, to comfort her. But, she cringed away. I calmly stood and pulled her to my chest. My heart nearly broke at the sight of her cringing away from one of the most violence-opposed person I knew. She started sobbing, 'Mommy! I want mommy!' I bounced her up and down. She started to calm.

"Jasper, give me your key card. I'm guessing Bella and Alice are in your suite." He handed me the card.

I got to the room as quickly as I could. Alice and Bella were both sitting on the bed, crying, and hugging. Bella looked up at me. She took Addy and asked what we did to her. I answered truthfully.

Bella walked into the bathroom and stood over the toilet. She pulled her wedding band off, it landed in the porcelain bowl with a small '_clank'._

"I'm not married to that ass scratching monkey, anymore." With that, she brushed by me and out of the room.

I think I've fallen in love with her all over again.


	5. Chapter 5

There was a knock at my door as I stepped out of the shower. Not really caring, I wrapped a towel around my torso and answered the door. I was careful not to wake Addy.

"Um, I don't think I ordered any room—" I stopped my ramble when I saw who I was talking to.

"Uuhh, hey. Alice sent me to invite you to breakfast. The roads are closed and they're not letting anybody pass for a few days." Edward mumbled; a light blush crossed his defined cheekbones.

"How'd you know my room number?" I asked incredulously. He looked to the side, embarrassed.

"I, uh, asked the front desk if there were any Isabella's staying here, and sure enough you're the only one." He smiled the crooked smile. The one no woman known to man can resist.

"EDDIE!" A squealing, blonde, torpedo darted around my legs. Addy was clinging to Edward, as if she knew that he really was her dad.

"Hey punkin'" He picked her up and hugged her. I was astonished. She nearly didn't even let Emmett touch her.

"We'll be out in a bit. You can wait while I give Addy her bath and get dressed." I held out my hand as Edward put Addy on her feet. She grabbed my hand and squeezed.

Edward sat on the large, king-sized bed while I ran Addy's bath water. As soon as Addy was happily splashing around in about seven or eight inches of soapy water, I went out into the bedroom and grabbed a fresh set of clothes. Well, tried to. I forgot Addy and I's bag in the explorer.

"Edward, could you do me like a huge favor?" He nodded. I threw him the keys and told him,

"Could you bring the big duffel bag on the front seat? It's a dark green ford Explorer." He started to get up and I added, "Oh, and get my dog out of the back seat, please?" He smiled and said.

"The ass biter?" My face fell at James' name for Senna.

"How do you know what _he _called her?" I sneered. He raised his hands in surrender.

"Addy." Was all he said.

"Sorry." I mumbled. Even though I was still wrapped in a towel, Edward walked up and embraced me. My cheeks were wet with tears as I hugged him back. I was so happy to have someone from my old life back in my grasp, literally.

"Mommy?" A soft voice came from behind me. I turned around and saw my towel clad, soapy haired, little girl, shivering from the air conditioning.

"Hey, Addy. Eddie's gonna go get us some clothes to put on. Mommy was stupid last night and forgot to bring in our bag." I said. Edward turned and walked out the door.

I sat down on the bed and spread my legs into a 'v' large enough for Addy to sit in front of me and grabbed the brush.

"Come here. Let mommy brush your hair." She climbed up and sat in front of me. I grabbed the hotel robes on the chair beside me and put one around me and one around her.

I loved brushing Addy's hair. It was really relaxing. "Mommy, where are we going?"

"We're going someplace far away." I said quietly.

"But I like Eddie and Jazz. The bouncy lady scares me a little bit. And Jonah is cute; Jazz let me hold him last night." She pouted.

"Well, we're going back to where mommy grew up with her daddy. Eddie, Jazz and Alice live there, too." I said before kissing her cheek.

"Did you know them?" Addy asked.

"Yeah, Ally is my bestest friend on the whole wide world." I hugged her.

"What about Jazz or Eddie?" She turned to look at me with large eyes.

"Jazz and Eddie were friends with uncle Em. You know, the big teddy bear." I said.

There was the sound of a dog barking and cussing. I had to cover Addy's ears.

"God damned, mother fuckin', ankle biting, dog!" I jumped up and flung the door open. Sure enough, there Senna was, standing on top of Edward, snapping at his face.

"SENNA!" I thundered. "NO!" She jumped off of Edward and trotted over to me happily and nuzzled my hand. I swatted her into the room and closed the door. A few seconds later I heard Addy's delighted giggle. She loved that dog so much.

Edward as still laying there, his arm thrown across his eyes. The duffel was lying beside him. I knelt beside him.

"You okay? I'm sorry. I could've gotten her." I brushed a lock of his hair away from his eyes.

"I'm fine. Go get dressed. I'll come get you in about twenty minutes." I grabbed the duffel and walked inside. Addy was rolling around on the bed with Senna.

"Come on, sweetie. Here put this on." I handed her a t-shirt, her favorite pair of Barbie underwear and her favorite pair of jeans.

I put my bra and underwear on and dug through the bag. I picked a pair of leggings and a tunic. It was the outfit in the back of James and I closet, so he wouldn't notice any clothes missing.

"Ready to go, sweetie?" I asked, grabbing my purse. She nodded and clenched her little fist into the hem of my shirt-dress.

We met Jasper, Edward and Alice down at the restaurant.

"Jazz!" I exclaimed and hugged him. Even though we never really hung out that much, we've worked on projects and had some pretty good memories together. I'm actually the one who hooked Alice and Jasper up.

"Bell!" He laughed, picking me up and hugging me.

"I'm hungry." Addy said, crawling into Edward's lap.

"Okay, sweetie, what do you want?" Edward asked her.

"Pancakes." She squealed. My stomach rumbled at the thought of food.

"Sounds like Gurgles wants some pancakes, too." Alice giggled. Jasper and Edward looked at her like she was insane.

"She used to have a knack for naming peoples' stomachs. Mine was Gurgles, Rose's was Miss Rumble Tummy, Em's was Garbage Disposal. Cuz you know, that boy will eat anything you put in front of him." I laughed. **(I sort of based Emmett off my brother, Cody. We call him The Human Garbage Disposal.)**

"Good times. Good times." Alice sighed.


	6. Chapter 6

(_Bella's __**Mental**_ conversations.)

Addy snuggled into my side in her sleep as I lay awake, thinking about my predicament. I promised Alice I would tell him and he deserves to know.

_Should I tell him? _I asked myself.

_**Yes. Alice was right. He does deserve to know. It's his child and he's already missed four years of it. **_

_But, what if he doesn't want anything to do with us?_

_**You have to take that risk.**_

_Okay, how would I do it?_

_**I think you should go in there and explain it all right this second. Take Addy to Alice and Jasper and go to Edward's room.**_

That was it. I had to do it while I still had the confidence. While I still had a positive state of mind.

I scooped Addy into my arms, gently waking her.

"Addy, honey, wake up." My heart squeezed at the sight of something as simple, yet so beautiful as my little girl's sleepy green eyes staring up into my brown ones.

"What is it, Momma?" She rubbed her face with her tiny fist.

"Honey, I'm going to take you to Auntie Alice's room for a few hours. I'll be there to pick you up in the morning, okay, sweetheart?" I cooed, running my hand through her soft blonde hair.

"Okay, Momma." She nestled back into the crook of my neck and went back to sleep. I grabbed her little backpack and left for Alice's room.

I knocked quietly on the door, careful not to wake the baby.

"Bella. Hey, is something wrong?" A disheveled looking pixie opened the door.

"No, nothing's wrong. I just need you to take Addy while I go take care of something." I smiled, trying to convince her I wasn't nervous, but was pretty sure it came out as a grimace.

"You're doing the right thing. No matter what, Jasper and I will always have your back. Em and Rose, too." She leaned in and took my little sleeping angel from my arms.

"I'll be back in the morning, Ally. Thank you." I gave her a hug and kissed her cheek and planted a feather light kiss on Addy's forehead.

"His suite's right across the hall." Alice smiled.

EPOV

I was just getting into bed as I heard a timid knock in my door. I huffed and opened it.

"Hey, Edward." The last person I expected was standing in my door way wearing a pair of flannel lounge pants and a teeny white tank top.

"Hello, Bella." I smiled crookedly. Her eyes widened and she gave me one in return. My heart started to beat faster.

"Can I talk to you for a few minutes?" She asked meekly, not meeting my eyes. I had this undeniable urge to take her away and protect her from the horrors of the world.

"Sure, come in." I stepped aside as she went and took a seat at the desk beside the bed.

"So, how've you been?"

"Good…but, Bella, there's something you wanted to talk about, so let's skip the pleasantries and talk and I know it must be important." I said softly. She kept her head down as she glared at something in her lap.

"Hey, look at me." I cooed. I walked over to where she sat and knelt in front her and lifted her chin with two fingers.

"I'm sorry." She said, ashamed of something. Her big brown eyes filled with tears. My entire being was filled with curiosity and protectiveness.

"For what?"

"Please, don't say anything, let me get this out."

I nodded.

"This is so hard." She groaned, putting her head in her hands. "A few days after the graduation party, I found out I was pregnant. I was so ashamed of myself." Tears leaked from in between the fingers that covered her eyes. "I moved to Phoenix with my mom and met my husband about a week after that. He was so sweet to me. Took care of me, me but when I was around six months pregnant, he changed. Started coming home later, drinking more and a few weeks before I was due, he threw me into a wall. I was so afraid for my baby. When I did give birth, Emmett was the only one there. No one knew. Not even Rose."

"So…that means…" I trailed off. She nodded.

"I can't believe this!" I shouted, she flinched.

"I'm so sor-"

"Well, the damage is already done! I missed four fucking years of my _daughter's _life because you didn't have the decency to tell me!" I thundered as she walked out the door and slammed it behind her.

Oh my god, I feel like a jackass. She just told me everything, and more and I was so insensitive. I needed to blow off some steam.

I grabbed my gym bag and ran down to the 24hr. gym in the hotel and took my frustration out on a punching bag.

After about an hour, I felt a calming hand placed on my shoulder. I turned and found my pixie sister in law looking at me with a fire in her eyes I've never seen before.

"You asshole!" She screeched, slapping me across the face.

"What the hell, Alice?!"

"You should see her right now! You just ripped her heart out of her chest and stomped on it in front of her! She wanted you to understand. The only reason she didn't tell you was to protect you. She knew your dreams of playing college football. And she knew that telling you would get in the way of that. She's taken the brunt of both of your carelessness in the worst possible way; she was exiled, beaten and most likely raped. You need to get over yourself. Ever since high school, I've always figured you to been a careless, reckless, selfish, son of a bitch and you just proved me right." She said calmly and walked away.

I sank to the ground, tears clouding my vision. After feeling sorry for myself for a while, I got to my feet and went to Alice and Jasper's room.

"What?" Alice stuck her head out the door. "No she doesn't want to see you. Jasper has finally gotten her to calm down, and I'll be damned if you screw anything else up." She slammed the door in my face.


End file.
